Hi. both of the pushrods on my
987.1
broke. My replacement parts 98756127903 arrived today, but I can't seem to find any torque specs for the adjustment screw, nor the screw that attaches the rod to the pivot arm. I've searched, called the parts store, dealer parts, checked my "101 Projects For Your
Porsche Boxster
", all to no avail. Does anybody have torque specs for these screws? Thank you.
Snug. Did the plastic ends break? I see you're replacing the entire arm, most of us just replace the broken ball socket (widely available on eBay and
Amazon
- get the plastic ones, not the metal ones, it's a purposeful failure/weak point, keeps more expensive stuff like the gearboxes from breaking.)
I found no spec for it and I didn't obsess over it. I used a 4" long ratcheting hex-bit driver, with a T30 bit in it (from memory) - and both screws are the same Torx size. SNUG. No more than that. A bit of
blue Loctite
(tm) on the threads should keep things from coming loose.
At some point,
Porsche
changed the design of the end that attaches to the rotating crank.. on the later ones (which undoubtedly you got) - the hole at that end is slotted, and there is a bushing that goes into the hole with rubber washers on each side to prevent wobble. The purpose of the slot is that when correctly adjusted for length with the top up, the bushing is in the center of the slot, not pushing on either end, taking force off the plastic ball fitting, meaning hopefully it will last longer. It also relieves strain from the gearboxes.
If you are lucky and the arms are identical to what you already have - you can pre-adjust the length so it matches the length of your old broken ones. If not - there is an alignment process involving disconnecting the clamshell cover so it can be left open with the top all the way up (closed) and latched and you can reach down and adjust so the bushing has no contact with either end of the slot. Pretty much a PITA. A dealer is likely to charge you around $500 for the joy of replacing these, but even with the alignment - it shouldn't take a skilled DIYer more than an hour or two to complete the job.
If your car had the original design - you'll be now ordering the bushings/screws/washers kit to install them. The cost is around $40 for both sides.
There are actually 2 washers, one on each side of the arm.
If you have the newer design already, the rubber washers are undoubtedly perished by now - and you have to buy the entire kit (as above) to get just the washers. I wasn't about to do that and ended up ordering a plumbing/automotive-washer kit from Amazon, which had one group of washers that were the absolute perfect size for this purpose, actually better than the originals.
Here is the Amazon order info: boatsea 141 PCS Flat O Rings Washer Assortment Set, Included 60 Pcs 8 Size Rubber Washer Sealing Washer and 81 Pcs 10 Size Fiber Washers Kit, Rubber Flat Washer Assortment Kit for Car, Plumbing
by boatsea
Learn more:
boatsea 141 PCS Flat O Rings Washer Assortment Set, Inclued 60 Pcs 8 Size Rubber Washer Sealing Washer and 81 Pcs 10 Size Fiber Washers Kit, Rubber Flat Washer Assortment Kit for Car, Plumbing: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific
It was the 15x24x3mm black rubber washers that fit perfectly! (and I have more if I ever need to DIY again, and all those other neat washers for all sorts of jobs requiring washers..)
After doing all this good stuff, my top now opens and closes very smoothly, no shudder or jerky motions like it used to have.
BTW - welcome to Planet-9, the friendly Porsche forum!
How about taking a moment and visiting our New Members Introduction section and telling us a bit about yourself and your Porsche (and any other automotive history/stuff you'd like to..) It can be found at:
New Member Introductions
I bought plastic caps years ago, but one of the bushings broke so I ordered rods. When I took it apart, I noticed the passenger rod was bent so I needed them anyway. Now that it's back together, the clamshell is still jumping, not sitting right, and I get alerts on the dash, so I think a gear is broken. Now I'm waiting on gears and wires.
Did the rods come with the bushing kit? From the online catalogs, it appeared these were separate items. On mine, the bushings were made from steel as far as I could feel/see - be hard for one to break.
And thank goodness there are companies making replacement gears for the gearboxes.. the price of a new one is astounding.
Hi BBGun987, had to replace plastic cups and rebuild transmissions on my RS60. Had no luck on torque specs, just snugged all connections.
I was very careful to set the rods with cups to the same length. I also took some time to align both transmission arms, as close as possible, to the reference marks on trans case. However, the clamshell was cocked after all was installed. Disconnected the cable from the motor on the high side. Attached drill to adjust until the clamshell sat nicely in place. Found these helpful:
Top works as it should. Good luck.
Eyes up, look ahead.
LMFAO!! Miss read the date!! Thinking this is all done!!
Eyes up, look ahead!!
Finally getting around to working on the soft top that was trashed and came with the car, and I'm rebuilding everything.
So far, so good. However, in the rebuild, I did notice that there was indeed an ever-so-slight misalignment between both transmissions...I'm guessing it was on the right hand side...especially as the right side of the deck lid was always ever so slightly higher...and was able to spin the right cable to the same height.
Anyhow, I reassembled everything without touching the transmissions and things seem to be working okay -- which is fantastic. However, I now hear a click/creak from the right rear when raising the roof...which makes me think that the right gear is worn and it's skipping a tooth or two -- which might explain the misalignment I originally found. Both transmissions appeared likely undisturbed, so I'm guessing the
next
step would be replacing the gears on both sides to be sure.
What do you guys think?
@deilenberger
- Any thoughts, Don?
Also, it looks like there are sets available...one's white and one's dark...I'm assuming one goes to the left and one goes to the right...unclear which one would go where.
Thanks, everyone!
Follow the videos and you should have no trouble. I found metal gears, mine were stamped L and R. I still matched them when I opened the transmissions to verify fitment. Pull the noisy transmission first, disassemble and match the corresponding gear. With the internals well lubricated, mine took a few cycles to run quietly. I'm thinking plastic gears, while still needing lubrication, might be quite from the beginning. Go for it! Let us know what you find.
Eyes up, Look ahead
